Melo’s offense, defense boosts him on Sunday’s S&Ds

But Anthony might have outdone himself Sunday in New York’s 110-109 comeback victory at Indiana.

Anthony made a 19-footer with 4.9 seconds left, and then blocked Danny Granger’s shot to lift the Knicks to their seventh straight victory.

Playing without Amar’e Stoudemire, the Knicks charged back to score the final seven points of the game as Anthony led the charge.

Anthony is now 19-of-39 (.487 percent ) in his career on shots that either tie or give his team in the lead in the final 10 seconds of a game.

“I just love those moments,” Anthony told the Associated Press. “I make the shot, I’m a hero. I don’t, move on to the next game.

“I knew it was in,” he added. “Some of them, I’m kind of skeptical about. As soon as I released it, you just get that feeling. I came to the bench and told Jared (Jeffries), ‘If we get a stop, we’re going to go home happy.”‘

Anthony’s late plays enabled the Knicks to jump a game ahead of idle Philadelphia for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference’s playoff seeding. It also pushes them into Tuesday’s big home game against Chicago in a game that will have more than cursory interest for Spurs Nation.

“It was bigger than that,” Anthony said. “It was a big game for us confidence-wise. Coming down the stretch, finishing out the regular season with some good momentum, trying to make a big push. Tonight was another game we had to finish out.”

Anthony did it, earning the top spot on Sunday’s Studs and Duds.

STUDS

New York F Carmelo Anthony: Hit the go-ahead jumper with 4.9 seconds left and then preserved the victory by blocking a shot in Knicks’ 110-109 victory at Indiana. Anthony finished with 34 points, five assists, four rebounds and three blocked shots as the Knicks claimed their seventh straight victory and moved a game ahead of Philadelphia for the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference playoff chase.

Chicago G Derrick Rose: Erupted for 39 points, five assists and was plus-6 as the Bulls claimed their seventh straight triumph and 19th in their last 21 games in a 102-99 victory over Orlando.

Oklahoma City F Kevin Durant: Blistered the Lakers for 31 points and was plus-4 in the Thunder’s 120-106 victory that was their fourth straight and pulled them within a game of the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with two games remaining.

Miami F LeBron James: Went for 27 points, five rebounds, seven assists, four steals and was a team-best plus-24 in the Heat’s 100-77 victory over Boston — the Heat’s 13th victory in their last 16 games.

Oklahoma City G Russell Westbrook: Tallied 26 points, six rebounds, seven assists, two steals and was plus-8 in the Thunder’s victory at the Lakers.

Detroit G Rodney Stuckey: Came off the bench to produce 24 points, 11 assists and a team-best plus-21 in the Pistons’ 112-101 triumph at Charlotte. It was their third straight victory and ended an 11-game road losing streak.

New York G Chauncey Billups: Notched 21 points, seven assists and was plus-7 in the Knicks’ comeback victory at Indiana.

Sacramento G Marcus Thornton: Produced 21 points, four rebounds and three assists in the Kings’ 104-103 victory at Golden State to snap a two-game losing streak.

Detroit’s bench: The Pistons’ substitutes erupted for 68 points — most combined since the final game of the 2007-08 season — in the Pistons’ win at Charlotte.

Toronto G Jerryd Bayless: Went for 19 points, four assists and was plus-14 in the Raptors’ 99-92 victory over New Jersey. It ended a three game losing streak for the Raptors, who had lost nine of their last 10 before their victory.

Dallas F Dirk Nowitzki: Notched 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and was plus-11 in the Mavericks 115-90 victory over Phoenix — their second straight victory after a recent four-game losing streak.

Memphis G O.J. Mayo: Produced 18 points and three steals off the bench and finished plus-17 in the Grizzlies’ 111-89 triumph over New Orleans. The victory pulled the Grizzlies even with the Hornets for the seventh playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Dallas F Shawn Marion: Delivered 18 points and 11 rebounds and was plus-16 in the Mavericks’ victory over Phoenix.

Toronto F James Johnson: Tallied a season-high 18 points along with six rebounds, six assists, three steals and was plus-9 in the Raptors’ victory over New Jersey.

Sacramento F DeMarcus Cousins: Filled the stat sheet for 15 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, two steals and was a team-best plus-11 in the Kings’ victory at the Warriors.

New Jersey C Brook Lopez: Muscled for 35 points and 11 rebounds in the Nets’ loss at Toronto.

Los Angeles Lakers G Kobe Bryant: Notched 31 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals in the Lakers’ loss to Oklahoma City.

Orlando C Ryan Anderson: Produced a career-best 28 points and 10 rebounds while starting for the suspended Dwight Howard in the Magic’s loss to Chicago.

Golden State G Stephen Curry: Tallied 27 points, six rebounds, eight assists and was plus-1 in the Warriors’ loss to the Kings.

New Orleans G Chris Paul: Was held scoreless for the first time in his six-season NBA career as he missed all six shots, had two turnovers, a technical and was minus-12 in the Hornets’ loss at Memphis.

Los Angeles Lakers F Lamar Odom: Went 3-for-9 from the field with two turnovers and was minus-9 in the Lakers’ loss to Oklahoma City. It was their fifth straight defeat — longest since the 2006-07 season.

Orlando’s forwards: Starting forwards Brandon Bass and Hedo Turkoglu combined to clank through a 4-for-24 shooting night with three turnovers in the Magic’s home loss to Chicago.

Boston F Glen Davis: Went 3-for-11 from the field and was minus-16 in the Celtics’ loss at Miami — their 10th loss in the last 19 games as they moved a game behind the Heat in the playoff battle in the East.

Phoenix F Grant Hill: Hit only 3-for-12 from the field with three turnovers and was minus-20 in the Suns’ loss to Dallas — their second straight defeat and fourth in five games.

Charlotte G Garrett Temple: Clanked through an 0-for-4 shooting night with three turnovers and was minus-18 in the Bobcats’ loss to Detroit — their sixth straight defeat.

Indiana F Danny Granger: Scored a team-high 20 points, but went 7-for-21 from the field and was minus-8 in the Pacers’ loss to the Knicks.

New Jersey’s guards: Starting guards Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic combined to hit only 8-for-27 from the field with five turnovers and a collective plus-minus of minus-20 in the Nets’ loss at Toronto. New Jersey has lost three straight and nine of their last 11.

Golden State G Reggie Williams: Went 2-for-9 from the field and was minus-5 in the Warriors’ loss to Sacramento, ending their three-game winning streak.

Indiana G Darren Collison: Went 5-for-14 from the field with four turnovers and was minus-7 in the Pacers’ loss to the Knicks.